Man Who Robbed 5 Rhode Island Banks Sentenced To 2.5 Years In Prison

PROVIDENCE, RI — A Providence man who admitted he robbed five banks in Rhode Island, including three within three days in 2022, was sentenced Monday to two-and-a-half years in federal prison.

Dashawn Diaz, 24, admitted that on Jan. 12, 13, and 14, 2022, and on Feb. 1 and 8, 2022, he presented notes to tellers at banks in Providence, Pawtucket, and East Providence, saying he was robbing the bank. In at least one of the robberies, Diaz told a teller, "Hurry! Big bills only" as he presented a note that read "Armed Robbery," federal prosecutors said.

On March 2, Diaz pleaded guilty to five counts of bank robbery, admitting that on Jan. 12, 2022, he robbed a Providence branch of Santander Bank of $7,100; on Jan. 13, 2022, a Providence branch of Citizens Bank of about $2,700; on Jan. 14, 2022, a branch of Citizens Bank in Pawtucket of $952; on Feb. 1, 2022, a Santander Bank branch in Providence of $2,348; and on Feb. 8, 2022, a TD Bank branch in East Providence of $3,167.

Following Diaz's prison sentence, he must serve three years of federal supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $15,807 in restitution.

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